Telephone-exchange system.



A;E.'L'UNDELL. .TELEPHONEE'XCHANGE SYSTEM.

APPLICATION FILED 16.16. l9l6- Q I Patented Apr. 16, 1918.

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Patented Apr. 16,1918. in w UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ALBEN E. LUNDELL, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR TO WESTERN ELECTRICCOMPANY, INCORPORATED, OF YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION" OF NEW YORK.

TELEPHONE-EXCHANGE SYSTEM.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 16, 1918.

Application filed August 16, 1916. Serial No. 115,209.

New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inTelephone-Exchange Systems, of which the following is a full, clear,concise, and exact description.

' This invention relates to telephone exchange systems.

The object of this invention is to provide means whereby a line introuble may be cared for.

A feature of this invention is a circuit arrangement by which calls to aline in trouble are diverted to a special operator, and by which a wirechief or an attendant is signaled, if through any means such trouble isremoved.

A further feature of the invention is a circuit arrangement whereby aconnecting operators calling supervisory relay is not operated until thespecial operator plugs into the jack in which the line in troubletemporarily terminates, regardless of whether or not the, terminals ofsuch line are arranged for party line ringing.

The invention has been shown applied to a semi-automatic telephoneexchange system, but is obviously capable of use with telephone systems.of any type.

It is thought that the invention will be best understood from thefollowing detailed description, reference being had to the accompanyingdrawings.

In the drawings, Figure 1 shows the substation apparatus of a callingand a called subscriber with portions of a connecting operators cordcircuit, and diagrammatically indicates portions of an automatic switchfor establishing a connection to the called subscriber. Specialconnections at the distributing frame are indicated, suchconnections tobe set up when the line of the called subscriber is in trouble. Fig. 2shows a circuit arrangement for extending a line to an -informationoperator and to a wire chief.

Let us now assume that the subscriber whose substation apparatus isindicated at 1 deslres to communicate with a subscriber whose substationapparatus is indicated at 2, and that the line running to substation 2is in trouble. The subscriber at 1 removes his receiver from the hook,whereupon a line slgnal 3 is displayed in the well-known man-.

ner. A connecting operator inserts a plug 4 into a ack 5 of the callingline, energizing answering supervisory relay 6 over the substationcircuit from the battery of the usual repeating coil 7. The insertion ofthe plug 4 into the jack 5 energizes the cut-off relay 8 and theoperation of the supervisory relay 6 prevents the lighting of thesupervisory lamp 9 in the well-known manner. The operator thenascertains the number of the wanted line and operates an automaticswitch, the brush set of which is indicated at 10, 11 and 12. Theautomatic switch is controlled by circuits set up by a sequence switch(not shown), and after the brush set is positioned on the terminals 13,I4 and 15 of the wantedline and such sequence switch arrives in position16, ringing current is sent out over the line. The automatic selectorswitch and controlling sequence switch therefor are preferably of thetype whose operation is described in Patent No. 1,168,319.

When the line running to substation 2 was reported out of order, specialconnections were set up to jacks 16 and 17 over conductors 18, 19, 20and 21 for a purpose to be described. Conductors 18 and 20 terminate ina plug 22, and conductors 19 and 21 terminate in a plug 23, which plugsare then permanently inserted in jacks 16 and of relay 25, armature andback contact of ing generator 60, winding of relay 27, lower armatureand front contact of relay 25, brush- 11, terminal 14, conductor 18, tipof plug 22, tip contact of jack 16, conductors '29 and 30, left-handhigh resistance winding of relay 31 condenser 32, conductor 33, tipcontact of jack 17, tip of plug 23, conductor 19, terminal 13, brush10', upper armature and front contact of relay 25, to ground. Suflicientcurrent flows to o erate a drop 34 controlled by relay 31, but slnce theleft-hand winding of relay 31 is of high resistance, the trip relay 27doesnot operate. The operation of drop 34 closes a circuit from ground,drop 34 and its contact 35, windings of relays 36 and 37, togroundedbattery; Relays 36 and 37 are energized, the operation of relay37 causing thedisplay of a line signal 38 in the well-known manner. Theoperation of relay 36 will cause the trip relay 27 to-energize over acircuit from ground, ringing generator 60, winding of relay 27, lowerarmature and front contact of relay 25, brush 11, terminal 14, conductor18, tip of plug 22, tip contact of jack 16, conductors 29, 39, aresistance 40,-lower armature and front contact of relay 36, to groundedbattery. Relay 27 attracts its armature, thereby removing the shuntabout relay 26, which then energizes in series with relay 25. When relay26 attracts its armature, it shunts out the winding of relay 25, whichdeenergizes and cuts ofi the ringing current and connects the talkingstrands of the conductors. At the same time the sequence switch is movedfrom position 16 to position 18, which is the talking position. Thismovement of the sequence switch is controlled by circuits not shown. I

The connecting operators callin supervisory signal 41 is not energizedat t is time, since its circuit is from grounded negative pole ofbattery, lower right winding of repeating coil 7, winding of relay 41,lower armature and back contact of relay 25, brush 11, terminal 14,conductor 18, tip of plug 22, tip contact of jack 16, conductors 29, 39,resistance 40, lower armature and front contact of relay 36, to negativepole of grounded battery.

It might be well to note at this time that if the station called is on aparty line, the arrangement might be such that ringing current wouldcome in over. conductor 19, tip of plug 23, tip of jack 1.7, conductor33, resistance 42, upper armature and front contact of relay 36, togrounded battery as before.

This circuit would allow trip relay 27 to operate, but would prevent theenergization mal condition.

of supervisory relay 41 as before, since the circuit of relay 41 wouldthen again terminate on both sides in like pole of battery.

When the special operator at O is signaled by the operation of lamp 38,she inserts a plug 43 into jack. 44 associated with lamp 38. A circuitis then closed for a relay 45 from ground, upper left-hand winding ofrepeating coil 46, tip of plug 43, tip contact of jack 44, conductors47, 48, winding of relay 45, conductors 49, 50, ring contact of jack 44,ring contact of plug 43, supervisory relay 51, lower left-hand wlndingof repeating coil '46, to grounded battery; At the same time a circuitis closed from grounded battery, right-hand winding of rela 31,conductor 52, sleeve contact of jac sleeve of plug 43, resistance 53, toground.

-Relay 3lattracts drop 34 and restores this device and its associatedsignal 38 to its nor- The energization of relay 45 closes an energizingcircuit for calling supervisory Y relay 41 from grounded battery, lowerright- 'hand winding of repeating coil 7, winding of relay 41, lowerarmature and back contact of relay 25, brush 11, terminal 14,.conductor18, tip of plug 22, tip contact of jack 16, conductors 29, 54, impedancecoil '55, armature and front contact of relay 45, conductors 56 and 33,tip contact of jack. 17

tip of plug 23, conductor 19, terminal 13,

brush 10, upper armature and back contact I of relay 25, upperright-hand winding of repeating coil 7, to ground. Supervisory relay 41remains energized until the operator at O removes plug 43 from jack 44.The coil indicated at 55 is of comparatively low resistance'but is ofhigh impedance, so that it may remain bridged across the talking circuitwithout interfering with the conversation. I

The operator at 0 may now inform the calling subscriber that the desiredline is out of order.

When plug 22 was inserted in jack 16, a circuit was closed for lamps 57and 58, the lamp '57 informing the operator at O that a line in troublehas been connected to acks 16v and 17 and that she may expect calls overthis line. The lamp 58 informs a wire chief, a portion of whose cordcircuit is shown at O, that a line in trouble has been connected to hisposition. A jack 59 is connected with a relay 62 from grounded battery,-winding of relay 62, sleeve contact of jack 59, sleeve of plug 61,resistance 63, to ground.

In order that the arrangement now to be described may operatesuccessfully, it is to be assumed that the trouble on the line runningto the subscriber at substation 2 consists of either a short circuitacross the con- 7 64 and 65. The removal of plug 61 from jack 59 resultsin the deenergiza'tion of relay 62, whereupon a circuit is completed forrelay 66 from grounded battery, winding of relay 66, spring contact 67of relay 62, conductors 68 and 69, sleeve contact of jack 16, sleeve ofplug 22, conductor 20, to ground at the point of trouble, if suchtrouble is a ground. If the trouble is in the nature of a short circuit,the circuit just traced will be extended across such short-circuitingpath to the other line conductor, conductor 21, sleeve of plug 23,sleeve contact of jack 17, conductor 70, and armature and back contactof relay 62, to ground. When the trouble is removed from the line, relay66 will be deenergized, whereupon a circuit is closed for relay 71 andlamp 72 from grounded battery, winding of relay 71, lamp 72, armatureand back contact of relay 66, key 65 in its depressed position, toground. The lighting of lamp 72 informs the wire chief that the troublehas been removed and the energization of relay 71 completes a circuitfrom ground through a generator 73, condenser 74, bell 75, key 64 in itsdepressed position,

and armature and front contact of relay 71, to ground. ,The bell 75 isthus caused to ring and may signal the wire chief at O or call hisattention to the lighting of the lamp 7 2.

The conductors 18, 19, and 21 are usually connected at the point wherethe line in trouble enters the distributing frame. When the wire chiefreceives a signal indicating that the trouble has been removed, hecauses the normal connections of the line to be reestablished at thedistributing frame, and connections may be made thereto in the usualmanner.

Instead of using a single switch as described in this embodiment of theinvention, the connection might equally well be established over a trainof automatic switches, the dotted lines at 7 6 and 77 indicating thepossible presence of such switches.

What is claimed is:

1. In a telephone exchange system, calling and called lines, means forestablishing special connections when a line is in trouble, aninformation operators position, a wire chiefs position, a signal at saidwire chiefs position, means for diverting a calling line to saidinformation operators position if the called line is in trouble, andmeans for operating said signal should the trouble be removed.

2. Ina telephone exchange system, calling and called lines, meansforestablishing special connections when a line is in trouble, suchconnections terminating in plugs, jacks arranged to receive said plugs,a pair of conductors running from said jacks to an information operatorsposition, a second pair of conductors running from said jacks to a wirechiefs position, a signal at said wire chiefs position, means at saidinformation operators position to allow said information operator toinform the calling subscriber that the desired line is in trouble, andmeans for operating said signal should thetrouble' be removed.

3. In a telephone exchange system, calling and called lines, meansincluding aconnecting operators position for establishing connectionsbetween said lines, a connecting cord circuit thereat including a callinsu- {pervisory relay and means for app ying ringing current to thecalled line, means for establishing special connections when a line isin trouble, an information operators position, a wire chiefs position, asignal at said wire chiefs position, means for diverting the callingline to said information operators position if the line called is introuble, means for operating said signal when the trouble is removed,means for positively tripping said ringing current when applied to aline in trouble, and means for preventing the energization of saidconnecting operators calling supervisory relay until said informationoperator plugs into the connection. I

4. In a telephone exchange system, calling and called lines, means forestablishing special connections when a line is in trouble, suchconnections terminating in plugs, jacks arranged to receive said plugs,a pair of conductors running from said jacks to an information operatorsposition, a second pair of conductors running from said jacks to a wirechiefs position, a signal at said wire chiefs position, means at saidinformation operators position to allow said information operator toinform the calling subscriber that the desired line is in trouble, andmeans including a relay and a locking key for operating said signal,said relay being arranged to deenergiz'e when the trouble is removed andestablish a circuit through said key for operating the signaling device.

5. In a telephone exchange system, calling and called lines, meansincluding a con- 7 necting operators position for establishingconnections between said lines, a connecting cord circuit thereatincluding a calling supervisory relay and means for applying ingmgcurrent to the called; line, means for estabmes es lishing specialconnections when the line is in fective for both individual and partyline trouble, an information operators position, ringing for preventingtheoperatlon of said 10 means for diverting a calling line to saidsupervisory relay until the information; operators position if the linecalled is in operator ha established connection to the trouble, means toconnect said information calling line. operator to said calling line,means for posi- In witness whereof, I hereunto subscribe tively trippingsaid ringing current when my name this 15th day of August A. D. 1916. 15applied to a line in trouble, and means efv ALBEN E. LUNDELL.

